Administration
Program Administration
The PSDP administrative office is located at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, NY. The Program Office coordinates application and evaluation materials, arranges all meetings for the PSDP fellows and committees, and is charged with day-to-day management of the PSDP and its budgets. Fellows’ salaries and expenses are administered as subcontracts through their approved training institutions.
Team
Program Leadership
Sallie Permar, MD, PhD
Program Director
Chair of the Department of Pediatrics and Nancy C. Paduano Professor and Pediatrician-in-Chief at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Provides strategic leadership for PSDP, advancing its mission to train and support the next generation of pediatric physician-scientists.
Adin Nelson, MD, MHPE
General Curriculum Lead
Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine and Associate Pediatrics Clerkship Director. Leads the PSDP career development curriculum and coordinates expert faculty and guest speakers.
Joy Howell, MD
Early Career Faculty Development Lead
Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine and a nationally recognized leader in faculty development. Delivers programming on academic career advancement, mentorship, leadership, and negotiation skills.
Crystal Botham, PhD
Director of Grant Writing and Professional Development
Director of the Office of Pediatric Research Development at Stanford University and Founder of the Biosciences Grant Writing Academy. Leads grant writing and professional development training for scholars.
Program Staff
Janet Lam, MSW
Program Manager
Oversees the day-to-day operations of PSDP and serves as the primary point of contact for scholars, alumni, mentors, and institutional partners. Manages administration, tracking, reporting, and alumni engagement.
Dakota Koop
Program Assistant
Provides administrative and operational support for PSDP activities, helping coordinate scholar programming, communications, meetings, and data management.
Committees
Governance & oversight
The PSDP is advised by a national Steering Committee which sets the program policies. Its members include representatives of AMSPDC and the funding agencies. Sallie Permar, MD, PhD, is the current Director of the Pediatric Scientist Development Program.
Selection Committee
Conducts annual interviews of candidates and ranks them for funding. May include faculty not on the steering committee who represent relevant scientific fields.
Program Evaluation Committee
Sets programmatic policy and reviews the Program’s effectiveness in terms of the PSDP fellows’ training and career development.
Funding Agency Representatives on the Steering Committee
Edward Behrens, MD
Rheumatology Research Foundation
Robert Colbert, MD, PhD
Arthritis Foundation / CARRA
Wendy Chung, MD, PhD
Warren Alpert Foundation (WAF)
Janna Patterson, MD, MPH
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
Anitha John, MD, PhD
American Heart Association (AHA)
Susan Furth, MD, PhD
American Pediatric Society (APS)
Jacqueline Ho, MD, MSc.
Association of Pediatric Program Directors (APPD)
Elizabeth Yu, PhD
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF)
Jonathan Cherry
March of Dimes (MOD)
Susan Samuel, MD, MSc
ENRICH
Selection Committee
Stephanie Davis, MD (Chair)
UNC Chapel Hill
Anthony Flores, MD, MPH, PhD
Vanderbilt University
Rasheed Gbadegesin, MBBS, MD
Duke University
Alejandro Gutierrez, MD
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Praveen Raju, MD, PhD
University of California San Diego
Joseph St. Geme, MD
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Leslie Walker, MD
AMSPDC / University of Washington
Program Evaluation Committee
Carla Davis, MD
Howard University
Mary Leonard, MD (Chair)
Stanford University
Glenn Flores, MD
University of Miami
Ophir Klein, MD, PhD
Cedars-Sinai
Theresa Lu, MD, PhD
Hospital for Special Surgery / Weill Cornell
Donna Martin, MD, PhD
University of Michigan
Rashmin Savani, MBChB
University of Florida
John Williams, MD
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Oversight
How fellows are reviewed
PSDP committee members are available to advise fellows throughout the training period. Fellows and their mentors submit yearly progress reports to the Steering Committee, which monitors continued academic development and the sponsoring department’s commitment. The Program Evaluation Committee also reviews career development at the annual PSDP meeting, held with the AMSPDC annual meeting, usually in late February/early March.
Year One
Individual advising
First-year fellows receive individual advising from committee members as they begin their protected research time.
Year Two
Interview & poster
Second-year fellows undergo interviews, with committee members identifying areas of concern, and present posters of their research.
Year Three
Interview & oral summary
Third-year fellows undergo interviews and present brief oral summaries of their research to pediatric department chairs and residents.
Every fellow, every year
- All fellows attend career development workshops covering mentorship, grant proposal preparation, personal–professional balance, and effective negotiation.
- Yearly progress reports are submitted jointly by fellows and their mentors to the Steering Committee.
The PSDP administrative office is located at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, NY. The Program Office coordinates application and evaluation materials, arranges all meetings for the PSDP fellows and committees, and is charged with day-to-day management of the PSDP and its budgets. Fellows’ salaries and expenses are administered as subcontracts through their approved training institutions.
Program Leadership
Sallie Permar, MD, PhD
Program Director
Dr. Sallie Permar is Chair of the Department of Pediatrics and the Nancy C. Paduano Professor and Pediatrician-in-Chief at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. An internationally recognized physician-scientist, she provides strategic leadership for the Pediatric Scientist Development Program (PSDP), advancing its mission to train and support the next generation of pediatric physician-scientists.
Adin Nelson, MD, MHPE
General Curriculum Lead
Dr. Adin Nelson is Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine and Associate Pediatrics Clerkship Director. He leads the PSDP career development curriculum, ensuring that educational content remains relevant, engaging, and responsive to the evolving needs of scholars. He also coordinates expert faculty and guest speakers who contribute to the program’s educational offerings.
Joy Howell, MD
Early Career Faculty Development Lead
Dr. Joy Howell is Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine and a nationally recognized leader in faculty development and academic mentorship. She develops and delivers programming focused on academic career advancement, mentorship, leadership, professionalism, and negotiation skills, helping scholars successfully transition to independent faculty careers.
Crystal Botham, PhD
Director of Grant Writing and Professional Development
Dr. Crystal Botham is Director of the Office of Pediatric Research Development at Stanford University and Founder of the Biosciences Grant Writing Academy. She is an expert in research strategy and grantsmanship, providing investigators with the tools needed to develop competitive funding applications and successful research careers. Within PSDP, she leads grant writing and professional development training for scholars.
Program Staff
Janet Lam, MSW
Program Manager
Janet Lam oversees the day-to-day operations of PSDP and serves as the primary point of contact for scholars, alumni, mentors, and institutional partners. She manages program administration, scholar tracking, reporting, annual meetings, and stakeholder engagement, ensuring the successful implementation of all program activities. Janet also supports strategic planning, program evaluation, and long-term alumni engagement initiatives.
Dakota Koop
Program Assistant
Dakota Koop provides administrative and operational support for PSDP activities, helping coordinate scholar programming, communications, meetings, and data management. She works closely with program leadership to ensure the smooth execution of program initiatives and a positive experience for scholars and alumni.
Committees
The PSDP is advised by a national Steering Committee which sets the program policies. Its members include representatives of The Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs (AMSPDC) and the funding agencies.
Sallie Permar, MD, PhD, is the current Director of the Pediatric Scientist Development Program.
- The Steering Committee members are assigned to one of two subcommittees:
- The Selection Committee: conducts annual interviews of candidates and ranks them for funding. This subcommittee may also include faculty not on the steering committee who represent scientific fields related to that of the applicants.
- The Program Evaluation Committee: sets programmatic policy and reviews the Program’s effectiveness in terms of the PSDP fellows’ training and career development.
Edward Behrens, MD – Rheumatology Research Foundation
Robert Colbert, MD, PhD – Arthritis Foundation / Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA)
Wendy Chung, MD, PhD – Warren Alpert Foundation (WAF)
Janna Patterson, MD, MPH – American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
Anitha John, MD, PhD – American Heart Association (AHA)
Susan Furth, MD, PhD – American Pediatric Society (APS)
Jacqueline Ho, MD, MSc. – Association of Pediatric Program Directors (APPD)
Elizabeth Yu, PhD – Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF)
Jonathan Cherry – March of Dimes (MOD)
Susan Samuel, MD, MSc – Empowering Next-Generation Researchers in Perinatal and Child Health (ENRICH)
Stephanie Davis, MD, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Selection Committee Chair)
Anthony Flores, MD, MPH, PhD, Vanderbilt University
Rasheed Gbadegesin, MBBS, MD, Duke University
Alejandro Gutierrez, MD, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Praveen Raju, MD, PhD, University of California San Diego
Joseph St. Geme, MD, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Leslie Walker, MD, Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs (AMSPDC) / University of Washington
Carla Davis, MD, Howard University
Mary Leonard, MD, Stanford University (Program Evaluation Committee Chair)
Glenn Flores, MD, University of Miami
Ophir Klein, MD, PhD, Cedars-Sinai
Theresa Lu, MD, PhD, Hospital for Special Surgery and Weill Cornell Medicine
Donna Martin, MD, PhD, University of Michigan
Rashmin Savani, MBChB, University of Florida
John Williams, MD, University of Wisconsin-Madison
PSDP committee members are available to advise fellows throughout the training period. In addition, PSDP Fellows and their mentors submit yearly progress reports to the Steering Committee. The Steering Committee uses this information to monitor the fellows’ continued academic development and to ensure the continued commitment of the sponsoring departments.
The Program Evaluation Steering Committee members also review the fellows’ career development at the annual PSDP meeting, held in conjunction with the AMSPDC annual meeting, usually in late February/early March.
- First-year Fellows receive individual advising.
- Second-year Fellows undergo interviews and Committee members work with them to identify areas of concern.
- Third-year Fellows also undergo interviews and Committee members work with them to identify areas of concern.
- All Fellows attend career development workshops that cover important topics such as mentorship, grant proposal preparation, personal-professional balance, and effective negotiation.
- Second-year fellows present posters of their research.
- Third-year fellows present brief oral summaries of their research to an audience of pediatric department chairs and residents.